I don't know if it's called the Triple S, we just called it the West Indian Asian market on This side of Eastern Parkway. I wish we had known it's actual name, that would have saved some time. I too thought the owners might be Korean. He didn't seem all that depressed, but I don't know any details. This winter they stopped being 24 hours. I don't know how that factored in to the decision. Also recently the Met Foods started closing later.

Yes, and it could probably easily combined with the Crown Fried Chicken (CFC) next door. I don't see CFC surviving the next lease renewal.

That would be cool, but there is an entrance/stairway between the two storefronts. Not sure how they'd merge the two with that entrance in the middle. Also- I think it is very interesting that you think CFC won't survive a rent increase. I walk by there every day and they always have customers (I know that isn't a perfect measure of a business's success, but they certainly are still open 24/7).

I'm not a landlord or real estate professional, but does anyone else feel that landlords are jumping the gun a bit, in their rent-raising? I'm talking specifically of Nostrand Ave, around Eastern Parkway. It seems that there are a lot of closing businesses and vacant storefronts that remain empty for months on end. I'm thinking particularly of the Pizza shop next to former Triple-S market that has been closed since I moved to the area over 1.5 years ago. If they can't find someone to rent that prime spot, what is the landlord of Triple-S thinking? Nostrand ave is certainly "budding" but it is doing so very slowly! It seems to be a mismatch between the landlords' expectations, and the businesses who could imagine making a profit in this area. I'm afraid that Nostrand Ave will become a ghost town, with everyone being priced out but no one moving in to take their places.

Meanwhile, who knows how long the former Triple-S will remain empty. I speculate that many transplants (myself included) come from areas where air-conditioned & refrigerated supermarkets are the norm, and they tend to stick with what's comfortable. Since Met has extended their hours, I can only assume they are doing well. I'd love to see them use the money to make their store a bit cleaner and brighter to attract even more customers.

The changes stemming from the SBS route seem to be compounding the problem.

By 2017, I expect many of the single story structures to be town down and replaced with mixed use commercial-residential

I expect many of the larger spaces to become large sit down restaurants, like Barbachino on Franklin. There, the owner created a the kichen on one side of a staircase (CFC?), and pass thru to a larger area (Triple S?).

Lots of money will be made and lost on Nostrand over the next few years.

I imagine that most the warehousing, particularly warehousing that is happening on Nostrand between Sterling and Eastern Parkway, will be alleviated once the Sterling Terrace apartment rentals open for business. A large influx of new residents with means and preferences will transform the retail in this strip, especially as people walk to the subway on their way to/from work.

Whynot, I think there is a completely different dynamic on Nostrand than there is on Franklin or Washington or the other previously gentrified avenues. Most of the property on Nostrand is held by a small number of landlords. I don't get the sense that there will be a lot of selling out to developers as they come knocking. If anything you may see them start to develop their own properties instead. I know that a couple of them are focused on bringing higher quality shops and services to the strip and are actually acquiring properties where the opportunity exists on the street.

Also, I can only think of a couple of single story structures that are currently not occupied by "new" businesses that I would imagine have gotten longer (5-7 year) leases. For example, both NoBar and Nostrand Avenue Pub are in single story buildings. Many of the other single story buildings have longstanding businesses (a couple of them house dry cleaners) that have thrived on the avenue through the changes.

I think its much more interesting to talk about those few sites that are clear development opportunities. There is the lot on the corner of Herkimer and Nostrand, and the one on Nostrand and Prospect, both of which are vacant and have significant FAR. The other interesting development would be the reclaimation of split properties (the small 10-15 foot wide storefronts) to house newer businesses in the space tradtionally meant for one retail business

sunnyfriday, It is my understanding from a recent talk with someone in Met Foods, that they will soon be doing an overhaul and upgrade along there. In fact, if Whynot is walking his dog around there it may even be worth taking a picture for a "before" shot. I don't have many more details though, except I do have the reason the meat department seems to smell in that store and it's related to the water tower above and supposedly has nothing to do with the actual meat.

The unrefrigerated buckets of meat grossed me out a little, but I'll really miss the Triple S. Not being a transplant though this might not be surprising. There is still a store with similar model on the other side of EP and the smaller one across from Met Foods. One of the reasons Met foods made their hours more normal is people were requesting it and it was no longer so dangerous for the cashier to go home late. Now they need to make the hours even later to 10:00-11:00pm and especially on Sunday, fix up the floors and the smell (no matter what causes it), and diversify the food options a little.

If Met Foods is planning an upgrade and overhaul, the kindly owner will be ensuring his continued success. I am an ardent lover of our Nostrand Ave Met Foods. The owner really seems to be trying to figure out the balance of what different shoppers are interested in buying, and at what price points, and I feel like he has diversified the store stock in the three years I have been shopping there. The owner will stock anything if you ask for it, the sales are great, and I am basically able to get everything I need from the Met -- except for meat (and well-priced produce that I used to buy at Triple S, but will now get at Green Mango Tree or the Korean greengrocer). I have not ventured beyond the organic/free range chicken that is offered, but I have noticed in recent weeks/months that they have upped their game tremendously. Many cheers for the Met!

If trucking grocery companies accepted EBT then it would be a real risk. As an aside, they really need to get on that. It would be a real way to combat food deserts.

My favorite standard grocery store is still the Met food on Vanderbilt ave. At least when I lived over there they carried such a diverse selection. I could easily find anything I was looking for. There are still a number of items I don't see on the shelves of the Nostrand ave Met foods.

There haven't been any structural changes to Fine Fare on Kingston (like the addition of a deli section) but the variety of products available has definitely started changing. Three years ago I couldn't even get guacamole there. Last year a shopper in front of me was buying tofu and organic arugula.

There is a world of difference in both the Met and the Key Food on Nostrand between today and when I arrived in the neighborhood 10+ years ago. Back then I would only purchase housewares and closed packaged items at both. No fresh fruits or veggies, no milk, and certainly no meat from either place. Both stores have taken steps to clean up their back of house areas where butchering and meat packaging occurred and have improved lighting and cleanliness in the stores. There is enough turnover that items on the shelves are no longer dusty from sitting. I no longer need to go down to the Foodtown on Fulton, and actually feel like I can buy the occasional pack of chicken or beef without worrying that I might suffer through an evening of intestinal distress.

I will however miss the Korean grocers, who seemingly don't get a lot of love from newbies. One of the cool things about those places (especially the big sucessful ones) was the ability to get decent produce and things like cod liver oil and root tonic at the same place. Many of my favorites are already long gone, but I've held out hope that some of the survivors would pull it together and up their game. Seemingly, many of them are choosing either to retire, or to turn over the day to day operations to the new immigrants from Ecuador, Peru, etc.

@homeowner, I never understood why those places don't get much love either. Or why people totally overlook that access to a wide variety of fresh fruits and veggies when they're talking about food deserts. I actually got off the train one stop early and tried to stop by Triple S last night to take advantage of the closing sale and see if I could get some discounted gripe water, but they were already closed.

I can think of two scenarios:1. The landlord may have concluded that potential tenants were intimidated by the space was more marketable gutted, or as a sterile while box with lots of new electrical outlets.

2. A prospective tenant has informed the tenant that they will pay the requested amount, but only if the landlord "builds to suit", saving the tenant from the pain that contractors and DOB can inflict.

Quote: Prime Crown Heights grocery/gourmet shop for Lease Bustling Crown Heights Potential Gourmet/Grocery store for Lease! Was a vegetable/grocery store in the past. Great curb appeal! 35 wide frontage with full basement, walk-in, conveyor belt.Store approximately 1050sqare feet - Basement 700 square feet. Subway directly across the street on Eastern Parkway, great foot traffic on a street that is changing rapidly! An opportunity to take advantage of this up and coming area. Price $8,000

I would love to open up a specifically Italian market. Meats, cheeses, fresh and dried pasta, cans of imported tomatoes. On Tuesdays and Thursdays we would have fresh house made mozzarella and on Mondays and Wednesdays we would have fresh ricotta. Something special on Fridays. Pastries. Strufoli.

But $8,000/month is a LOT of rent to pay with the profits from a small market...

I suspect that they were trying to get it rented via some discount broker, and then reached the conclusion that the math works better when you get it rented for a good price, yet have to pay a full fee.

It is sort of interesting that this will be be owned by a foreign LLC, incorporated in Delaware.
http://findnycorp.com/corporation.php?id=3511749
Note, I may be on the wrong track. This may be the guarantor for the lease, but the not the entity that runs the business.

(NOTE: EDITED. We received an email requesting that we "retract/correct" portions of this message that apparently incorrectly cited an individual and a company as being owners of this property. --Editor)